Four people remained unaccounted for Friday for after three homes were destroyed and several others damaged in Johnsons Landing in the Kootenays, Macpherson said.

Authorities would not provide details about the four missing people, but the two daughters and ex-husband of a Delray Beach, Florida, chiropractor could be among them. The family has a house in the disaster site, according to the chiropractor's representative.

Valentine Webber, the ex-husband of chiropractor Lynn Migdal, and their daughters Diana and Rachel Webber were preparing to sit down for breakfast Thursday in the family home in Johnsons Landing, and that's the last time that Migdal heard about her family's activities, a friend, Bridget Finelli, told CNN. Finelli said Migdal wasn't available for interviews, but that Finelli was authorized to speak for her friend.

Two search-and-rescue teams and a number of Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers were on the scene, along with geotechnical workers and a landslide expert, Macpherson said.

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Search-and-rescue crews were having difficulties because of poor cell phone reception, Macpherson said, adding that they were sending him updates via satellite phone.

The steep slopes and mountainous terrain are home to a few permanent residents and various summer residents, he said.

The area has been drenched by a record amount of rain during the past month, but it was not clear whether that was a factor, Macpherson said. Geotechnical staff were trying to determine the landslide's cause.